If you're looking for the NFC team with the firepower to challenge the Packers for the crown, you might want to cast your lot with the Saints.

The league's top-rated offense is rounding into form heading down the stretch, with four key components that make them a legitimate threat to dethrone the champs. Let's take a look ...

1. Tempo
The frenetic pace of the Saints' offense keeps opponents on their heels. The constant shuffling of personnel combined with a myriad of formations and pre-snap movement makes it difficult to get a bead on their plan of attack. Drew Brees adds to the confusion by pushing the pace with a mixture of no-huddle and quick snap counts designed to keep the defensive coordinators from substituting personnel or varying their play calls for fear of a miscommunication error leading to a big plays.

Against the Giants on Monday, the Saints' organized chaos tactics led to receivers running free through zones and defenders failing to stay in their assigned gaps on running plays. The Giants frequently failed to identify the proper strength of the offensive formation, and defenders were left scurrying to get to their assignments prior to the snap.

Drew Brees has regained his Super Bowl MVP form. He currently leads the NFL in passing yards (3,689) on the strength of eight 300-yard games and ranks third in touchdowns (27) and passer efficiency (103.9).